Overview

4 successive terms, starting in May and ending in August the following year. Queen's graduates are out into the job market early.

Intermediate-Senior candidates must select one of their teaching subjects from one of four areas: Dramatic Arts; Music; English or Visual Arts.

Teacher candidates complete 20 weeks of placements, including an alternative practicum that can be done outside a school setting and anywhere in the world as long as it is related to the program.

Travel fellowships support education-related travel outside Canada such as for alternative practicum placements.

Emphasis is on learning from one another and exploring the positive role that artists and the arts play in our schools, our communities, and our society.

Courses & Practicum

In addition to the required curriculum courses of the regular program, all ACE students participate in arts focused courses that shape their experience while at the Faculty.

Regular Practicum placements mean that you will work alongside other education professionals in classrooms for 20 weeks: one component in the first summer (3 weeks); two components in the fall (3 weeks each); one component in the winter term (4 weeks) followed by an alternative practicum (3 weeks); and one component in the second summer (4 weeks).

The three-week Alternative Practicum offers an opportunity to gain experience in a concentration and placements are typically completed outside the public school system. By selecting a placement in a non-traditional educational, artistic, or blended arts-educational setting, teacher candidates broaden their knowledge and understanding of the arts and arts education. With guidance and support, ACE candidates are expected to initiate, design and develop an individualized alternative practicum. You can do the Alternative Practicum anywhere in the world as long as it is related to your program. We also provide travel fellowships that can help you get there. Previous candidates have acquired placements at, for instance, the National Arts Centre, the National Gallery, the Canadian Opera Company, the Stratford Festival, the Shaw Festival, Random House Publishing UK, Whitney Museum of Art NYC, the Lincoln Center Institute NYC, and historical re-enactment festivals in Italy.

Admission Requirements

Selection of Consecutive Education teacher candidates is based on the application requirements in TEAS Requirements for Queen's as well as the supplemental documents submitted to Student Services. See How to Apply.

Selection of Concurrent Education teacher candidates is based on their application made in December of year 4.

The synergy of talent in the class has no bounds. ACE events and extracurricular activities provide teacher candidates with further opportunities to initiate and experience arts-based projects and develop their professional network.

As they are based on the class experience and group goals, each year's event program has a shape and direction uniquely its own. However, the following are some traditional ACE events and activities:

Field Trip: Previous trips have been to Ottawa and Toronto, including the National Art Gallery, the National Arts Centre, the Canadian Opera Company, Soulpepper and TVOntario.

Studio Workshops: Hosted by artists-in-residence, Faculty members, ACE grads or classmates, "Notes at Noon" frequently features ACE musicians and "Art on the Walls" is an on-going exhibition throughout the year.

Extravaganza: An end of year event showcasing ACE performance artists in the McArthur Auditorium and an exhibition by the visual artists in the Studio.

The Faculty also posts spotlights on alumni on its website, so check to see if any of your former classmates have been profiled. Please contactRebecca Carnavale with your news, stories, photos and suggestions for additional spotlights.

There are also a many programs, events and opportunities available to Queen's alumni worldwide through Queen's Alumni and you can stay connected online:

"ACE helped me to discover how to be an advocate for the arts in education. It is about the artistic thinking as an important part of creative process, the value of quality arts education, the role of the arts in education. It is about learning from one another, reflecting, sharing, reading, writing, and creating. It has helped me to think in more clinical ways about art, my role as an artist teacher, and about my own work as well."

Ju-Hye Ahn

"It is easy to find people who understand that value of arts education but it is hard to find educators who are artists at heart. ACE allows artists to become qualified teachers while surrounded by like minded people and pursuing creative endeavours."

Allison Daley

"Artists who teach do not pay lip service to buzz words like creative and divergent thinking... we live it. It is a part of our way of seeing the world. Since graduating ACE I have pursued many avenues of teaching... part time at the college/university level in theatre and music programs, full time at an Ottawa area high school. When the students you interact with really don't have a sense of what is possible as creative thinkers, you quickly realize how valuable your art form is to opening up their minds to the possibility or contributing to society in alternate way. This is especially true of students who perhaps are being pushed toward 'safe' career paths."

Eliza Jane Scott

"Our small, select group was a refuge - a place to gather and talk about big ideas in art, education, and the world out there. A diverse group where our incredible range of experiences and skills made for the most exciting collaborative learning opportunities… it was personalized, rich, stimulating, and totally unforgettable."

Paul Vernon

"The ACE program was a family for me within the B.Ed. year. Being a part of a small group of dedicated artists with the focus of becoming artist-educators made a huge difference. The instructors offered a safe creative space for each candidate to develop an approach to teaching as an artist."

Dan Dumsha

"Our ACE class quickly became a community, where we all learned not only from our incredible professors and program directors, but also from each other. The program offers a unique syllabus by changing the typical classroom environment to provide aspiring teachers with opportunities to learn through arts workshops, professional artist guest lecturers, trips, and class projects."